From the circular economy to the ecology of networks

the comparative advantages of digital transformation for solidarity economy

Abstract

This article addresses the paradigm shift for the notion of work in society impacted by digital transformation. It proposes a reformulation of the concept of work from a conservative energy transformation, according to the first law of thermodynamics, to a new understanding of work as entropy reduction, according to the second law. As so, it is possible to make it compatible with the concepts of information and communication. The article suggests that this reformulation was already implicit in Marxist theory and differentiates it from the classical Ricardian model. Digital transformation is thought of as a epistemological break in the mode of production, which has consequences for the functional system of the economy. In that one, the dominant mode of the capitalist economy (platform capitalism) is confronted with alternative modes such as the Solidarity Economy. The article examines whether digital transformation brings comparative advantages to the Solidarity Economy and concludes positively in this regard.